On September 26, a reporter from Sports Weekly held an exclusive interview with Liu Guoliang.
R: Your semifinal match against Waldner received a lot of national attention. Unfortunately, against our hopes, you lost to Waldner for the 3rd time this year.
L: TT competitions are sometimes funny. Sometimes you keep winning, and sometimes you can't break out of a long losing streak. On the night before the semifinal, Kong and I lost the doubles match, even though we had the advantage. I was affected by that. Also, after the medal ceremony and the tests, I went back to watch tapes, and did not sleep until very late. In the competition the next day, I was not in the best shape both mentally and physically. Technically I played not too badly, but Waldner played even better. There were several balls that I hit to Waldner's extreme forehand that I was sure would have scored, but he looped them back, as if he had been waiting for them all along. Those 5 or 6 balls were what we called "miracle balls". Waldner need not necessarily judged them well, but he reached for them out of reflex and returned them. Usually in a match there are one or 2 balls like that from each side. But Waldner was very lucky on that day; almost everytime when I was on an upswing, he would hit one of those shots. But of course, the main reason why I lost was because I could not control the first 3 shots; I was too conservative in serve returns. Plus, when Waldner plays me now, he serves long a lot, and that makes it harder for me.
(Chung's note: What the Chinese called "first 3 shots" is the serve, the 3rd ball and the 5th ball. It is not the usual 3rd ball, which is the attacking of the serve return.)
R: So when you play Waldner again, solving the problems of the first 3 shots is critical?
L: Yes. I have to recover my advantages in the first 3 shots. Actually Waldner, like myself, does not play extended rallies well. So our first 3 shots are crucial to the whole match. He used to be vulnerable to my serves, but now he basically is not afraid of them. I have a very concealed serve motion already, so it is hard to improve there. So I must increase the strength of my 2nd shot (3rd ball), and be more daring. The backhand reverse loop is a supplementary technique; I score points mainly with my forehand. The backhand loop is OK against backspin that comes off the table. For short balls, the penholder still has to rely on pushes and blocks on the backhand. Some reporters asked me why I don't use my backhand loop more. I was a little embarrassed to tell them. If I used my backhand loop a lot, I would lose, because that means I was pinned on my backhand side by my opponents.
R: That made lots of sense. In the Persson match, we can tell that you have already changed.
L: For me, that match was more than just a fight for the bronze medal. I have to prove that I can still beat anyone in the world. This year I have not been in good form, but I still have support from a lot of people. I want to show everyone that I still have the potential; I can still play with the best.
R: How is your wrist injury?
L: Basically it does not affect me in the matches. But you can see that I am wearing a wrist support, and bandages under it. It does not hurt too much, but if I wear the bandages for a long time, I start to lose some feelings.
R: Next month we'll change to the big ball. How would that affect you?
L: I have not really tried the big ball yet. The younger teammates, from our national 2nd team, who play pips-out penholder style told me that the impact is not great.But my style is different than other pips-out penholders; they rely on power and speed, and I am more sensitive to spin. The reduction in spin in the big ball may affect my serves.
R: Maybe we can see the impact in October's World Cup in Yangzhou, China?
L: It has not been decided whether I will play in the World Cup. I am really tired after the Olympics. The penholder does not simply depend on skills like the shakehander; every shot has to be calculated, and each match requires a lot of energy. I want to rest for a while, and to make some adjustments.
Click here for a photo of Liu with a gold medal given him by the fans.
Click here for a photo of Liu serving aginst Waldner.